The Fairness Doctrine is Not Dead

AIM Report ^ | 7/2/2007 | Cliff Kincaid

[Mike Bates]

A blogger called the 309-115 vote against federal funding of the Fairness Doctrine a "historic vote for freedom of speech." A columnist called it "A big victory for radio broadcast freedom." But it was nothing of the sort. Even if the amendment from Rep. Mike Pence were to pass the Senate, it would do absolutely nothing to stop a Democratic president and Congress from reinstating the Fairness Doctrine. It was a political maneuver that has confused many people.

The Pence amendment to the Financial Services Appropriations bill, as AIM points out in a new special report, accomplished nothing-except to allow several dozen liberals to claim they are not interested in re-imposing the Fairness Doctrine.

Some stories about what happened were extremely misleading. TV Week reported that the House voted to "ban the Federal Communications Commission from reviving the Fairness Doctrine, which required broadcasters to offer competing viewpoints in a balanced manner when presenting controversial issues." But the "ban," as Pence acknowledges, is only temporary.

John Eggerton of Broadcasting & Cable magazine was accurate, noting that the Pence amendment "prevents the FCC from spending any money in 2008 to reinstate the fairness doctrine." The key point is that it only affects 2008-fiscal-year dollars.

Many Democrats voted for the Pence amendment because they know that the Bush Administration will not re-impose it-or that, if Congress passed it, Bush would veto it. In other words, there is no chance of it becoming law under Bush. Because the Pence amendment only applied to 2008 dollars, it enabled many liberals to posture as opponents of the Fairness Doctrine.

While the debate may have raised public awareness, the vote may actually hurt the cause of freedom in broadcasting more than it helps.

[KingLiberty]

The doctrine as proposed wouldn’t get past a lower court let alone the SCourt. Spinning their wheels, let them use up time and energy on this and all it does is give more attention to talk radio. Free publicity.

[Sir Hailstone]

Now that one commissioner’s term has expired, am I to assume that the FCC is now 2-2 assuming the Senate can’t get its thumb out of its bum long enough confirm another Bush appointee?

[rabscuttle385]

Good grief. Are we going to have another zombie bill walking around, stalking us in the night?

[Minn]

Instead of the “Fairness Doctrine” they should call it the “Make sure all the conservatives that stayed home in 2006 show up in droves to defeat us in 2008 Doctrine”.

[Nabisco]

I’ve commented on this issue here before, but in the spirit of keeping everything above the table, I do some work with the NAB. So that said, the so-called Fairness Doctrine is nothing more than an attempt to legislate results that the free market failed to provide — any measure that can thwart its progress is a good thing.